October 8, 2018
5 Questions With…Vilma Ahvenniemi
5 Questions with Vilma Ahvenniemi
1. Where were you/what did you do before working at Seriously?
Before working at Seriously, I co-founded a small gaming company, and we released a couple of game titles. However, I soon realized I wanted to fully concentrate on art and leave the company politics and financials for those who are truly passionate about it.
2. What is your current role at Seriously?
I’m a Senior Artist working on our popular mobile game, Best Fiends. My job is to create a variety of art for new game updates, which is really exciting since the game has so many fans who eagerly await new levels and features! I have worked on art for many different areas of Best Fiends including UI, 3D and 2D art, backgrounds, characters and Fiend styles, game blocks, animations, and I’ve even dabbled in marketing.
3. What’s your favorite part about your job?
My favorite part is seeing the features we come up with take shape and evolve as we create them. In particular, I work with the designers and programmers on new events. For example, in a recent update we created a daily event where you collect carrots for Baby Slug while playing the levels. When working on these events, we usually start with planning the feature together with the designer, then I create some concepts, and the programmer will make the first playable version for us to test. At this point we usually notice if something isn’t fun or doesn’t work and iterate until it’s perfect. After a week or two of tweaking, we have an update ready to be released to millions of players around the world. It has always fascinated me to see our ideas evolve into something you can play and interact with.
4. Who is your favorite Fiend or Slug and why?
My current favorite is Bandit Slug from our new short film “Fort of Hard Knocks.” She is really resourceful and a bit simple. In our recent update, our designer, who usually writes most of the dialogue for the game, was on holiday, so I was tasked with coming up with lots of jokes for Bandit Slug to say during our event. It was really fun, and I became fond of the character in the process.
5. When you are not working at Seriously or playing Best Fiends, what do you enjoy doing?
I love reading horror stories, sewing plush toys and road tripping. Every time I have a couple of days on weekends or holidays, my mind fills with creative things I want to do, which is why I’m also designing a board game with my husband.